Ep 86 - The Client-Attracting Mindset You Need For 2026

Episode Show Notes

As we step into 2026, your goals might include getting consistent clients, raising your prices, or finally handing in that NHS notice. But if part of you is already bracing for disappointment - if you’ve set goals before and not followed through - this post is for you.

Because here’s the truth: strategy is important. But mindset?
It’s the foundation.

In this post, we’re diving into three simple, powerful mindset shifts that will help you show up with confidence, stop second-guessing yourself, and start attracting more of the right clients this year.

Understanding What’s Really Holding You Back

If you’ve ever thought:

“I know what to do... I just can’t seem to do it.”

You’re not alone. This isn’t laziness or lack of discipline - it’s your nervous system doing its job.

As healthcare professionals, we’ve been trained to be cautious. We double-check everything. We aim to avoid risk at all costs.

So when it comes to putting yourself out there - posting a reel, pitching a collaboration, raising your rates - your brain says, “Too dangerous. Let’s not.”

But here’s the thing: those habits that kept you safe in the NHS?
They’ll quietly keep you small in business.

The good news? Confidence isn’t a personality trait. It’s a skill you can build - one small action at a time.

Mindset Shift 1 – Dare and Do

This shift is about training your brain to feel safe with discomfort.

Each time you post something that feels a bit vulnerable, say yes to a live video, or send a DM about a potential collaboration - you’re building what I call your courage muscle.

💡 Try this:
Every month, pick one small action that feels just a bit scary - and commit to doing it weekly. Think:

• Showing your face in stories
• Sharing a strong opinion
• Sending a pitch for a guest interview

This repetition teaches your brain: “I did the scary thing. I’m still safe.”
And over time? That action becomes just another normal part of business.

Mindset Shift 2 – Identity Over Outcome

Instead of fixating on goals like “sign 5 clients this month” - focus on who you need to become to achieve that.

Ask yourself:
What would a confident, client-attracting business owner do this week?

This is how I moved from frozen to fully booked. I would literally write:

“I am the dietitian who confidently shares my expertise online.”
“I am the dietitian who follows up with potential clients without overthinking.”

Then I would act from that identity - even when it felt stretchy.

💡 Try this:
Each month, write down one “I am the dietitian who…” identity. Stick it to your laptop. Let it guide your decisions.

Mindset Shift 3 – Flex the Visibility Muscle

Showing up isn’t always easy - especially when you’re afraid of being judged by colleagues, friends, or other professionals.

When I first started on Instagram, I didn’t show my face for over 18 months. The first time I posted a full video with my voice, it took two days to film and edit an eight-second clip!

But what changed everything?
Consistency.

I made a commitment to show up online once a week, no matter what. That single habit was the start of two six-figure businesses.

💡 Try this:
Practice visibility in a way that feels safe - whether that’s an Instagram story, a blog post, or engaging in a Facebook group. Then keep repeating it.

Every time you show up, you’re strengthening your visibility muscle. Like any muscle, it grows with use.

Confidence is Built, Not Found

Getting more clients in 2026 isn’t just about marketing tactics.
It’s about being seen. And that requires a mindset that says:
“I’m allowed to take up space. I’m allowed to figure it out as I go.”

The most successful dietitians I work with didn’t wait until they felt confident.
They started acting like the person they wanted to become - and the confidence caught up.

Your Action Plan for 2026:

• Dare and Do: One brave action each week
• Identity over Outcome: Decide who you're becoming - then act like her
• Flex the Visibility Muscle: Show up consistently (imperfectly is fine!)

You’ve totally got this.
And if you want support every step of the way, my Accelerate Business Support Programme is open right now.

Ready to get more clients in 2026?

Inside Accelerate, you’ll learn how to attract consistent clients, grow your revenue, and finally build a business that fits your life - without burning out or playing small.

Silver and Gold tiers are open now. Learn more here: https://www.sarahalmondbushell.com/mastermind

The Master Plan:

Helping you build the business of your dreams. Get your 22 point step-by step workbook here: https://www.sarahalmondbushell.com/master-plan

Connect with me:

Website: https://www.sarahalmondbushell.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dietitiansinbusiness/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dietitiansinbusiness

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/beyondtheclinicbusiness

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BeyondTheClinicPodcast

Episode transcription:

Welcome back to episode number 86, the client attracting mindset you need for a successful 2026. So if you listened to last week's episode, your 2026 plan might include getting more clients for your private practice. It might be making more money or leaving the NHS for good. But if you're still carrying some self doubt and fears around putting yourself out there, then this episode is for you.

You might have a rough plan in your head already of what you want to achieve this year and some goals that you'd like to hit. But if you're honest, there might also be a part of you that's already bracing itself because you've been here before. You set goals and then you've hesitated to show up online. You know what you should do, but you've talked yourself out of it. You've held back because you didn't want to say the wrong things or be judged by your NHS colleagues or other dietitians in the online space.

This is incredibly common for us healthcare professionals because we've been trained to be careful, to be accurate, to double check ourselves, to think about risk and responsibility. So it makes total sense that those habits don't magically disappear when you start a business. But the thing to remember is those habits that kept you safe in the NHS will quietly keep you small in business.

So if you don't want fear and self doubt and overthinking to keep running the show in 2026, something has to shift. In this episode, you're going to learn three really powerful and actionable mindset shifts to help you start confidently showing up and getting more clients.

I'll also be sharing a few stories from early in my journey so you can see that it really isn't just you feeling this way. And then I'm going to walk you through the exact habits that helped me start putting myself out there consistently, even when I was scared of being judged, and how those habits transformed my confidence and my business.

So this is part two of a couple of episodes all about planning your 2026 business. In the last episode, we talked about the practical side of mapping out your business plan. But today's episode is all about what happens before any of that work actually starts. It's about getting out of your own way so that this year in 2026, you don't repeat the same patterns as last year. And by the end of this episode, you'll feel like you've had a massive mindset reset. You'll be ready to take on anything that 2026 throws at you. So let's get into it.

Okay, first of all, it's important to understand why you experience things like self-doubt, things like fear of judgment and overthinking when it comes to showing up in your business. You might be thinking to yourself things like, I know I need to do more on social media, but I really just don't feel confident enough. People might judge me. What if another dietitian sees my content and disagrees with what I've said? What if I accidentally breach a guideline or compliance rule and I haven't even realized?

So why is it that we have these unhelpful thoughts and these feelings in the first place? Well, it's because our brains are wired to spot risk and to keep us safe. When you're putting yourself in a position that doesn't feel familiar, like posting on social media or doing a video for real, your brain interprets that as a potential threat. And the automatic response is to hit pause, not to post, not to risk doing the things that feel unfamiliar, unsafe.

And this is why even the most capable, skilled dietitians freeze at the thought of putting themselves out there. It's not that you're not good enough. Your brain is simply trying to protect you from the unknown. The first step is normalization. It's normal to feel self doubt. It's normal to worry about what other people think. It's normal to hesitate because you want to get it right.

Every health professional who starts a business experiences this wall. It's just part of the process.

Now, the goal isn't to magically erase fear or instantly feel 100 % confident. The goal is to learn to move forward despite it, to take action, even when your brain is shouting, stop, to acknowledge the fear, to understand it and just let it exist without it letting it control your actions. Every single time you post or reach out to a potential client, you're retraining your brain. You're showing yourself that yes, it is safe to put yourself out there.

Okay. Before we dive into some of the specific mindset shifts that will help you get more clients for your private practice, I want to share a story from early on in my journey. In 2016, I was introduced to Instagram. was terrified of showing my face publicly. In fact, my very first post was on the 14th of February, 2017, a picture of a chicken chow mein I'd cooked from a recipe book. It was followed by a lentil curry, some lemon curd, some scones, and a salmon avocado and eggs on wholemeal toast. I was really terrified of posting. Now this went on for 18 months before I even showed the side of my face whilst I was feeding a baby.

In June 2018 was the first time I posted a full face picture, and I changed my top about 19 times beforehand to make sure it looked okay. It was another two months after that before I recorded a video and that was sped up and just showed off a cookery book that I'd written. That eight second clip took two days to film and edit because of my nerves and I didn't post another video with my face and voice until June 2020.

That was over three years of being on Instagram without really showing my face and voice, a registered dietitian online. Now the point of sharing this is to show you that growth, confidence and visibility they don't happen overnight. They happen one teeny tiny small step at a time.

The fears that you might have about posting on social media, about putting yourself out there or running your business, sharing your opinions, I had them too. And for months, I let them stop me. But it was the small, consistent habits that made the difference.

Now, if you want to have a bit of a giggle, please go back to the Children's Nutritionist Instagram account and just scroll back and you'll see exactly those posts. But moving on, let's talk about the three shifts that are going to help you step into the version of you who naturally attracts clients without fear, without hesitation or overthinking running the show.

And these are the three shifts that changed the game for me personally in my business as well. They've taken me from being terrified to posting online to now running two multiple six-figure businesses. Each shift is designed to help you step out of fear, out of overthinking and self doubt and into the version of yourself that can hit your goals next year.

The first shift is what I call dare and do. So this is about deliberately putting yourself in situations that feel slightly uncomfortable. For example, it might be DMing someone about a collaboration. It might be doing your first ever live video. It might be posting your thoughts on a topic that you'd usually hesitate to share.

Each of these small but uncomfortable actions is like a mini training session for your brain. It teaches that showing up even when it feels scary, it's actually totally safe and it's exactly what's going to move your business forward. When you do something that feels a bit scary, your mind initially reacts as if it's a risk, but every time you take action anyway, your brain quietly learns, well, okay, that wasn't dangerous. In fact, nothing bad happened, it was fine. And over time, those repeated experiences help your brain become more comfortable with discomfort.

That's when posting and reaching out or trying something new stops feeling like a risk and starts feeling like a normal, manageable day-to-day part of just running your business. So an action step for you in 2026 is every single month of the year, start by picking one small, slightly uncomfortable thing and commit to doing it every week of that month.

The key is not to overthink it or try and make it perfect. It's just about building momentum and moving forward. The idea is to schedule small, deliberate actions throughout the year so that you start training your brain to act despite fear, despite self-doubt, despite a lack of confidence. And over time, those tiny uncomfortable actions, they do compound and gradually you will build up your confidence.

Okay, the second shift is what I call identity over outcome. So here's how this one works. As much as it's important to know the outcomes that you're aiming for, like how many clients you want to secure in a month or what revenue goal you want to hit. What comes first is your identity because that will dictate the results that you get.

So instead of obsessing over the outcome, start thinking about noting down the professional identity that you want to embody and then let that guide your actions. So when I was struggling with confidence, showing up online, not showing my face, I would start my week by writing, I am the dietitian who... type of statements. So for example, I am the dietitian who confidently shares my expertise online. When you start to embody that identity, the results naturally follow. Your actions, your content, actually everything you do, all start reflecting the version of you that can run a successful private practice.

So here's your next action step for the year. At the start of each month, throughout 2026, write one sentence about the professional identity you want to embody that month. And then just keep it on a sticky note on your desk, on your wall, just to remind you.

So here's some examples for you. I am the dietitian who reaches out to potential clients without overthinking. I am the dietitian who shares my expertise online despite what people might think or say about me. I am the dietitian who posts regularly on social media, even when I feel nervous to hit publish. And then let that identity guide your actions throughout the month ahead. And at the end of the month, just take a moment to reflect. Did your actions align with the identity you set? I hope so. If not, adjust it for the next month and then just keep going.

And then last but not least, the third shift is the visibility muscle. So lots of us struggle with social media in particular because of a fear of judgment. Maybe this is the fear of what other health professionals might think of you or what friends and family might think or what your old NHS colleagues might think. And I know this feeling all too well.

Way back in 2017, I was still working full-time in the NHS and I wrote an Instagram post about baby led weaning. It was accurate, it was evidence-based and it was something I could 100% stand behind. And yet 30 seconds after hitting publish, I deleted it. I deleted it because I was really frightened of judgment. What if my manager saw it? What if my colleagues thought I was trying to be an influencer? What if I got it wrong or someone disagreed with me publicly?

That fear of being judged completely froze me. That fear of being seen kept me silent for months afterwards. All the while I kept watching other dietitians and other people who weren't healthcare professionals talk about baby-led weaning really confidently online. Eventually I made a small promise to myself. I would show up online once a week as a non-negotiable no matter what. And that's exactly what I did.

So slowly things started to change. Each post I made, each time I reached out to potential clients, I was flexing that visibility muscle. The fear didn't go away overnight. It became something that I could work with rather than something that stopped me. I had to find a safer way of doing this and a new Instagram wasn't for me. So instead I opened a Facebook group and that's where I started practicing my visibility, that visibility muscle.

So remember, as much as visibility might feel really, really scary, it is a basic necessity for business growth. When you don't show up, your ideal client can't find you and you can't have a business. It is as simple as that. So one of the best ways to overcome the fear of putting yourself out there is just by flexing this visibility muscle.

This is about shifting your thinking from, I've got to be perfect to be taken seriously to, I'm allowed to show up, I'm allowed to learn, I'm allowed to improve as I go. And over time, your brain learns that actually being visible is safe. Each time you post, each time you reach out to a potential client, each time you share your expertise, you're exercising that visibility muscle. And like any muscle, it gets stronger with repetition.

So here's your action step for this one. Every single week this year, schedule a few small visibility actions every single week, like engaging and interacting with ideal clients in your audience or starting conversations in groups and communities where you know your ideal clients are hanging out.

Okay. So those are my three top mindset shifts for stepping into the version of you that naturally attract clients and consistently grows your business in 2026. It's all about training your brain by practicing dare and do you train your brain to act even when you feel uncomfortable by focusing on identity over outcome.

You train your brain to take action based on the kind of business owner and health professional who you want to be. And by flexing the visibility muscle, you train your brain to get used to being seen, sharing your expertise and stepping into spaces where your ideal clients are. The key to this is consistency. These shifts aren't a one off fix. They work because you practice them regularly. So take these into the year ahead, get yourself into a routine that works for you, keep committing to those small consistent actions each week and honestly you will be amazed by the way you start showing up for your business and yourself. You have totally got this.

Now, I want to tell you about my next episode that I've got for you. This is another very practical episode all about your finances for the year ahead. So we're going to really dig into understanding what your business expenses are, how much money you should be spending on what, how much you need to be paying yourself, and when is the right time to bring in team members, invest in tech tools and generally level your marketing.

It's a really practical episode and I think it's something that you're going to find really interesting. And if you feel like you need some more support with getting more consistent clients and growing your online presence throughout 2026, I am here to help you.

So whether you're brand new to business, whether you're just starting out, whether you're considering leaving the NHS or whether you already have an established business, but you want to up level and attract more clients, more consistently and bring in more revenue, you're in the right place.

I have two levels of support. In my Accelerate Business Support Program, I have spaces available in my Silver and Gold tier. The Platinum one is fully booked, I'm afraid. But this is where you learn everything you need to get consistent clients without risking your financial security, without wasting time on trying things that really just do not work for us in the UK and don't actually work in healthcare.

With Silver, you get access to all of my trainings and you can ask me questions inside our private community. With Gold, you also get access to twice weekly group coaching calls, you have some dedicated time with me every single week to work through your business.

If 2026 is the year for you to start building your business, then I'd love for you to drop me a WhatsApp message or a voice note on Instagram and let's talk things through.

I'd love to hear all about your goals for your business in 2026. What's holding you back from getting those consistent clients and growing it? It's completely no pressure. We'll just exchange a few voice notes and get really clear on your next steps and see whether my support could help you make 2026 your best year yet. I'll put all the links you need in the show notes below. Bye for now.